Words of Redemption
by DCcomicGirl33
Summary: Christine was still young and had so much to learn. Her heart and good nature are conflicting with her life. Yet she can't help but write to her Angel of Music while they are separated. She only wants to make things right for him. For both of them. Christine will try to mend the wounds caused by her own foolishness. E/C


"Come, come Christine! While there is still time to escape," Raoul pulled on her hand trying to usher her forward. Christine lifted the white fabric of the wedding dress and ran along behind her fiancé across the dark ground she had been familiar with. Her heels clicked on the stone at a fast pace clearly trying to leave the past behind.

Yet Christine couldn't help but glance behind at what could have been her future. Her heart was battling with her mind and body, screaming at her to go and make sure her angel was alright. Could she even call him that anymore? Could he still be her angel even after what he'd done? Even after what she was doing to him? The thought was unlikely and quite saddening to her. She had killed an angel.

Christine clenched her left hand and tried to bring her self back to reality, when she suddenly felt metal crush between her fingers. Curiously she looked down and saw a ring. A very nice silver ring with a fair sized diamond placed neatly in the center with smaller red gems surrounding it. It was very beautiful and she had wondered where it had came from. Realization was quick and painful.

It was the Phantom's ring.

The one he had given to her as one of the many tokens of his love. Immediately she stopped in her tracks, forcing Raoul to halt with her. "Raoul," she began in a worried voice, "his ring. I still have his ring," she held out a her hand to show him. He grabbed her hand gently and shook his head.

"There is no time, my darling. I promise we will dispose of it later, but right now we must leave," he spoke in a rushed tone. Once again trying to move her along, but she refused. Instead she looked horrified at the idea of simply throwing out such a pretty ring as if it were trash. She yanked her hand away from his and frowned at him in disapproval.

"Raoul I cannot! This ring is not mine to just throw away! I must return it to him! Yes... Yes that is what I'll do," picking up the bottom of the dress with both hands she turned around and started walking from the way she came. Raoul placed a hand on her shoulder and whispered her name softly, stopping her from continuing. She faced him now with a sad smile gracing her features. "Don't worry, my love. I will be back. It will take no time at all," he still looked uncertain. She sighed and leaned up to kiss him. "Raoul, this is something I must do."

He frowned, bringing a hand to gently cup her face. "I just don't want that monster to harm you," Raoul rubbed his thumb across her cheek in a soothing manner. Christine smiled up at him and placed one of her hands over the one on her face.

"He won't hurt me. I know he won't. He loves me to much," obviously this did not help her case. His displeasure of the other man loving her clear as day. She squeezed his hand and brought it away from her face looking at him seriously. "Raoul I'm going to so this. But I want you to get the boat ready. I will meet back with you but you must be ready to leave," he nodded and gave her a kiss before heading off. She inhaled deeply with unsteady breath unable to keep her eyes off of Raoul as he left. Part of her was glad he left so easily making going back simpler, but another part of her desperately wanted him to drag her away from here-kicking and screaming if it was necessary.

The idea she had started to become less and less wise as her courage began to leave her. Christine gulped and looked at the rather large ring on her hand. It looked like it had been designed by a wealthily man but had been made to fit a woman's dainty finger. The ring seemed to attract the little light that was in the underground lair and sparkled ever so slightly when she moved her hand.

Closing her eyes she deeply wished for this to be over. She wanted things to be simple again.

She continued he walk back to the Phantom. Upon arriving she saw him lying on the ground weeping and curled in a ball. Her heart ached and something inside her seemed to break along with the man. She stepped forward only looking at him.

The soft click of her heel alerted him of her and he looked up at her. The flesh on his face was extremely distorted and was popping out or sinking in on some places, yet Christine found that his eyes were the hardest thing to look at. So full of sadness and hurt it struck her very core. The Phantom slowly stood on his feet and watched her carefully.

Christine swallowed her nerve and stepped towards him. She slowly and secretly slid the ring off her finger and clutched it in her hand.

"Christine...," whispered the monstrous looking man before her. His hand reached out for her like he was wishing that she had returned to him. Christine extended her own hand and placed her hand in his. He squeezed her lightly, his eyes scanning her for any sort of reaction or emotion.

She only opened her hand and let the ring be placed in his own.

He pulled his hand away and looked down at the ring, his expression of shock did nothing but make the girl even more nervous and guiltily. He looked back up at her with hurt and bottom lip trembling slightly, yet he still managed to speak a few words to her. "Christine, I love you," he sung this to her softly in a peaceful way. His voice was so tender and full of raw emotion it almost compelled her to react.

Without much thought, Christine stretched out her arm and gently placed a hand in the better side of her angel's face. She want to speak to say something-anything-that would ease his pain, but somehow she knew no words she could say would be anything he would want to hear. So instead she let her thumb slowly slide across his cheek and wipe away a tear that had leaked out. She opened her mouth to say one last farewell, she owed him that much, but quickly closed it afraid her words would betray her.

Her hand fell back to her side and she turned away again. Her heart was beating fast and loud inside her chest and she felt it knocking into her ribcage painfully. She had left him alone again, but this time she did not look behind.

Half way back Christine felt something stream down her face and went to wipe it away. Moving her hand away she found it was wet. She sniffed and bit her lip, not realizing that she had been crying until now. She shook her head and continued to wipe her eyes to stop the tears from pouring out for she had cried enough in this one day. Now more than ever she had wanted Raoul to hold her and to say she had done the right thing.

She felt incredibly foolish for telling Raoul to go on without her. Now she was alone in a dark place feeling horribly unsure of herself. Hugging herself tightly she walked on. It couldn't be that hard to find the boats, and if she thought hard enough she could almost remember taking a straight path.

Or...maybe she had to make one turn up ahead.

Groaning softly she ignored the though of possibly getting lost and focused on remembering the way back to her Raoul. It took some trial and error but Christine figured out it was wise to stay away from any dark hallways, instead she favored the places that had candle light to guide her. She placed her hand on the stone wall and let it slide across as she walked down a path that was a bit more narrow than the rest. She recalled most of this place but most of it was hazy and she thought it nothing but a dream. She could remember her angel singing to her as they walked together, comforting her with his soothing voice when she had been afraid to venture in to deep. There was one time he had even held her hand. Encouraging her to move forward with him.

There was a painful twist in the pit of Christine's stomach upon remembering such gentler times. She closed her eyes briefly calling to memory of all the times that masked man had been tender with her. For the first time in what felt like weeks, Christine smiled a real smile. That man was her angel and not the Phantom that terrorized the opera house. What had gone wrong?

"Nothing went wrong, Christine! A demon is always evil," she could clearly hear Raoul scolding her when she had ask that question before. But she absolutely refused to believe her angel was the spawn of satan. Something must have happened to twist him so much no one was born bad. Christine shivered as she remembered the Phantom's face when he was angry. His anger alone made her want to duck and run for cover.

People must have treated him so wrongly for his face. He was just hurt because no one had excepted him. People must have thrown him out, cast him away as someone else's problem. He was just hurt and alone...

Christine shook her head. "No Christine. That does not give him the right to act the way he does," she murmured to herself. She could not simply excuse the Phantom of the crimes he's committed. The harassing, the murders, the chandelier...

As the minutes ticked on Christine found herself stopping near the end of the long narrow hall. She could see a glow of a lantern and how it bobbed up and down slightly, and if she listened hard enough she could sworn she heard small splashes of water. She could not stop herself from smiling as she found her exit. Picking up her dress she quickly walked towards the light, wanting nothing more than to be held in Raoul's arms.

"Raoul! Raoul I'm here! I'm sorry I took so long," she called out to him as she practically skipped over to a boat on the water. Though the image of her fiancé was quickly shattered when a figure in a black cloak stood in the boat. Her movements were jerked to a halt and fear gripped her heart. She froze in place and stared wide eyed at the person before her.

Christine's eyes slowly wondered over to the boat only to catch a glimpse of a large lump laying down. She took a step back fearing the worst, yet she hoped that she was horribly wrong.

The first thought that entered her mind was that the Phantom had went back on his word and went after Raoul when she had left. He must have taken some hidden path to the point where had Raoul had been. The Phantom went back on his word and now her Raoul was...

Christine let out a choked sob. She needed to run. Run far away from the monster that killed her long time friend out of anger and jealousy. She turned trying to move as fast as she could, but that did not work well for her. As she was about to dash away her heels got caught up in the longer parts of her dress causing her to trip and fall.

The Phantom began to approach her with quick strides. Christine only crawled backwards looking upon this man with fear and slowly tears began to fall from her eyes. One hand reached for her. She screamed.

"Hush! Hush now child," the voice commanded of her. It was calm soothing voice, one that was warm and motherly yet awfully familiar. The young singer blinked and stared up at this stranger, once they spoke she knew it could not be the Phantom she was addressing. This person was a woman, and now that Christine really looked, she wasn't nearly as tall as him. "Christine, what in God's green earth are you doing here?! I thought the Vicomte took you away from this place," the woman crouched down next to the frightened girl and pulled back her hood to reveal her face.

Christine quickly wrapped her arms around the older woman's neck and cried. "Madame Giry," she weeped with relief. She buried her face into the older woman's shoulder enjoying the brief comfort it brought her to see a friendly familiar face. She sniffed and looked at Madame Giry, pulling away slightly to view her better. "But Madame, h-how did you know where to find me? Is Raoul alright? Is he...," she gulped but she couldn't say the word so instead she nodded toward the small boat.

The woman glanced behind her at the boat with a look of uneasiness. It would seem that she was unsure of what to tell Christine. "Darling, I cannot fully answer your questions. I do not know where the Vicomte is right now... I thought you where with him," she gave a sadden sigh and gently petted Christine's hair. "All I know that he is indeed alive."

The young girl let a breath of relief and leaned back letting go of her old dance instructor. "But shouldn't he be here? I told him to wait for me and he agreed. Madame he should be here," she stated rather bluntly looking around. She looked all around but could not see other soul besides the woman.

"This is a separate waterway and leads to a different location. The young man is likely to be still waiting in the main one near the opera house," Madame Giry stood pulling Christine along with her. "I will explain to you later but for now we must leave," her commanding voice left no room for argument so Christine nodded.

Madame Giry walked quickly over to the boat where she removed her cloak and placed it on the large lump Christine had seen earlier. "Christine I am going to ask that you be patient with me, but I cannot take you back to Raoul," Christine looked ready to object but she was cut off. "Child this is something I will not negotiate! For now please trust me. If I were to find Raoul and leave you with him, then I could also not leave. Please Christine."

Christine swallowed thickly feeling quite uneasy about the whole situation. Two people she had trusted used her for their own gain. Two people she had loved very much betrayed in the most painful of ways, so how could she trust anyone again without feeling caution.

Something in the back of her mind told Christine that this woman would never hurt her. Madame Giry had always looked out for her and taken care of her as if she were her daughter. Christine owed her dance instructor so much, the very minimum she could give was her trust.

The brunette closed her eyes and nodded following behind her teacher. "Thank you Christine... You will be staying at my home tonight. I'm sure Meg will be ever so pleased to see you well," she said carefully stepping into the boat. Christine went to copy her when her shoes got caught on her dress again.

"Curse these infernal shoes," she bent down and quickly took them off throwing the offending pair behind her and climbed into the boat. She groaned as some of the edges of her long dress skimmed the water and hit her ankle. She looked down at the dress with a certain fondness in her eyes. She allowed her fingers to slide across the intricate designs and patterns of the fabric. It was truly a beautiful dress. Something she might have even picked out when her time came. But that was probably the point.

A soft coughing sound drew her attention, looking up Madame Giry was looking at the object that was covered by her cloak. Christine curiously followed her gaze and watched with her not really knowing what she was staring at. "Don't gawk child! If you are riding with me you're going to help me row."

The girl nodded and quickly took one of the ors as her teacher sat down beside her. They pushed off and rowed in silence. Christine was rather content with the mild quietness, with only the small waves of the water to fill the void, yet that didn't stop the questions from piling up in her mind. They must wait, Christine thought, it would horribly inappropriate to ask right now.

So like the good girl Christine was, she would wait to ask Madame Giry any questions until they were safely back at home.

Home. It was such a sweet sounding word. A word that buzzed around the young singer's head since she started to study her role in "Don Juan Triumphant". She was comforted by the thought of the safety those walls could give her. It gave her a place of privacy. Away from the eyes of the audience, away from the manages and Carlotta's chastising comments, away from the cold presence of the Phantom, and...even away from the demandingness of her fiancé. It was where she felt a little more free.

Though a piece of her, she knew, would always find a place in the opera house. A portion of her accepted the audience, the managers, Carlotta, Raoul, and the Phantom as part of her life she could not get rid of. In a way, they were all a family connected by a single string that lead back to one word; entertainment.

The peaceful silence was broken by a horse whisper. "Antoinette." So low and quiet that Christine would have mistaken it for the wind or the soft splashes of the water if the sound had not been repeated. The girl went to look at her teacher to tell her that she had not uttered her name, only to find the seat beside her empty.

Christine twisted in her spot to look behind her where she found Madame Giry sitting by the covered object, murmuring to it quietly. Curiously, the young girl turned and faced her teacher. She edged closer and got a better look at the mysterious object, yet the only thing she got out of it was a fright when it began to speak.

"Get this...accursed cloak off of me," someone growled lowly. The voice so deep it was only logical it could belong to a man. The cloak was pushed away from the man-not an object-causing Christine to rather harshly fall back on her rump.

"Don't take it off," Madame Giry snapped as soon as he had removed her cloak. She made a motion that seemed like she was going to cover the man again but the jolting of the boat drew her attention. Her eyes met with ones belonging to a frightened young woman. She reached for Christine with her own look of worry. "Christine, please remain calm."

The man pushed himself up on his elbows and turned his head to look at the girl in question. "Christine..?" There it was. The pure white smooth mask staring back at her. Half a man half an unfeeling statute. It frightened her to be so close to him again and she so desperately wanted to look away.

"Oh no no no," came the disapproving voice of Madame Giry as she placed one hand on the Phantom's chest forcing him to lie back down. "You can barely keep your eyes open, let alone sit up. Now remain silent while I take care of everything," the Phantom opened his mouth to object. "Not another word. Not unless you want to frighten the poor girl in to going overboard."

Madame Giry shifted around to face her old dance student with pleading eyes. "Why," seemed to be the only word that could leave Christine's lips. She griped one side of the boat tightly now feeling awfully unsteady. The older woman touched her arm gently though the action still caused her to flinch.

"Christine, my dear, please be calm. He...he is an...old acquaintance of mine that is very ill. I just wish to see him better. I want to make sure he is well, but at the moment I need to help him. As your teacher I ask you to trust me."

"I never asked for your help...woman," groaned the man laying not to far away from them. Now that Christine looked she could see the slight tremors of his body with sweat starting to bead down his face. His cheek looked flushed and seemed to be indeed sick.

"What h-happened to him, Madame? He was not sick when I last saw him."

Madame Giry scanned the lying figure before answering. "He took medicine. More than he should have, and it looks like it was pretty strong too... He said it was to calm him," Madame Giry grabbed Christine's hand. "This is why I must make sure he is alright. If I leave him here I fear that he might not have the strength to fight off this medicine. It is imperative that you trust me Christine. Full heartedly I need one hundred percent cooperation. I promise on my heart I shall not let anything bad happen to you. Do you trust me, child?"

Christine glanced at the weak Phantom before nodding. "I trust you," she whispered. "And...if it is alright with you and...him...I would like to help. In every way possible." The older woman smiled warmly and gave a quick thank you before instructing Christine to get back to rowing.

Only a minute or so had passed before they had reached shore. Madame Giry had to pull the Phantom to his feet and pull him off the boat. "Don't be bashful now, child. Come and help me walk him to the carriage," so with awkward movements Christine moved her arms around the Phantom's waist and placed his arm over his shoulder. Walking him to the carriage was quite a cumbersome task, and Christine wondered how Madame Giry would have carried him on her own.

Not to far up ahead there lie their transportation. They carefully placed the Phantom in his seat and as he slumped again the window, Madame Giry made her way to the horses. "Madame?" Christine questioned. "Are you not joining us?"

"Well someone has to drive, Christine. And I do not trust anyone here to keep such a secret as the Phantom of the opera riding along with us."

"Surely you don't mean us to ride together...alone. Especially after the events of tonight," Christine spoke with ludicrously. She watched the older woman take a seat and held on to the reins of the horses.

"He is hardly in any conduction to do any harm. You will only keep an eye on him. Make sure he is still breathing, that's all I ask."

The singer nodded unsurely before climbing in the carriage, sitting across from the Phantom and closing the door. The carriage jolted forward slightly causing both members to sway slightly.

The cab was large enough to maintain a comfortable distance, but small enough that could clearly see the exhausted face of the Phantom. It was quiet inside aside from the haggard breath of the man in front of her. Christine had wondered what medicine could this type of affect on a man's health. True that he had taken a large dose of it but it couldn't have been that strong.

The carriage wallowed in silence a while longer before violent coughs filled the space. Christine jumped at the sudden loud noise and almost went to the man's side out of instinct. Though her mind outweighed her heart and she waited for him to stop coughing on his own.

He coughed a few more times before finally relaxing and settling down once more. Christine felt herself relax as well, glad to see she did not have to intervene. Though the peace was not left alone long. "Why are you...still here?" Questioned the Phantom.

Christine started winding and unwinding her hands together, clearly nervous. "I got lost," she answered honestly. "I did not mean to disturb you or Madame."

"No," he snapped irritably. "Why are you still here...in the cab. Why not simply run away again," he asked with a bitterness that seemed to scorn the young singer. She sat up straighter, suddenly feeling defensive.

She thought about her answer to him, not wanting to make a sick man mad. Why had she stayed? For Madame Giry's sake of course, but also because of him as well. Her heart of gold could not simply leave him so ill and miserable. Not when he was there for her when she could barely stand on her own.

So she answered him in the best way she could. "Because my teacher needed me and who am I to refuse?" vague yes, but it got the point across.

He looked ready to question her further but was cut off by another round of coughing fits. His shoulders jerked violently as he brought a fist to his face to cover his mouth. This time Christine did not wait for the coughs to go away on their own. She carefully hopped to the other side and sat beside the pale man.

Gently, she placed a hand on his back rubbing it up and down in a soothing manner. She felt him tense under her touch but found him relaxing as she continued the action. "Shh...relax. Slow breaths," she coaxed him as his coughs became less harsh. They simmered down to the occasional small spasms.

She slided a little closer to him and carefully placed the back of her hand to his head. "By God," she mumbled. "You're skin feels as though you were in an oven!"

He jerked his head away and let out a huff in annoyance. "That tends to happen when one is sick, Christine," he managed to say in a belittling tone. The brunette bit her lip feeling slightly silly for speaking such an observation aloud.

She decided it was best to ignore it, so she continued to lightly rub his back in an attempt to comfort him. It was a surprise that he had not tried to push her away, or even say that he didn't want the likes of her touching him. Instead he slumped against the carriages walls a little more and closed his eyes.

He was on the verge of sleeping but seemed to keep fighting it off. So Christine wanted to try something different to help him sleep. She felt herself grow bolder as she quietly cleared her throat. She took a breath to steady her nerves and opened her mouth.

She began to sing to him.

A slow and soft lullaby she adored when she was a little girl. She found comfort in the song and hoped he would too.

He became incredibly still once she sang. Most likely out of shock, she determined, but never the less she continued to sing to him, hoping that it would lure him into a peaceful sleep. She couldn't help but smile when his breathing calmed and slowed to a composed rhythm. No longer did it sound forced or shaky.

As the song came to an end she found no need to touch him anymore and drew her hand back. In the quietness of the cab, Christine began to think. Madame Giry had said he had taken the medicine to relax and had taken more than what was necessary. Because of me, Christine thought as she gazed upon the man next to her sadly.

Perhaps he wasn't really trying to calm himself, maybe it was an attempt on his own life. It was not to be ruled out as a possibility. Christine knew the pain of losing someone you loved so dearly. She had wanted to die herself when her papa died, but she had people to help her through it. She had her angel as a comforter.

She wondered if he had attempted suicide because he had no one who could help him. Seeing as the only person he cared about had rejected him, what else had he to turn to? He had tried to end his life because of Christine. He was trying to die because of Christine. It was all because of Christine.

The young woman felt tears start to form and she quickly tried to wipe them away. "Enough crying," she scolded herself. She looked at the man sleeping beside her and her heart gave a painful squeeze. "Oh angel...what pain I must have caused you," she whispered more to herself than to him.

Christine drew the curtain at the window back slightly and gazed up at the stars in the sky. She began to pray to the heavens, to God, and to her papa to help her through this situation and to guide her choices. But overall she prayed for them to help her fallen angel, and give him the redemption he so needed.

Fist PotO Fic. Based on the Royal Albert Hall. There will be more chapters not a one chapter story. I was going to continue it but I felt it was long enough already. Ok. Thanks, and let me know what you think.


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